1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an electrical connector, and in particular, to a modular jack having a simplified structure for facilitating manufacture and assembly thereof.
2. The Prior Art
Modular jacks are widely used in telecommunication systems for facilitating connection of components thereof. Conventional modular jacks are disclosed in Taiwan Patent Application Nos. 78207828, 82201698, 83212694 and 84101576. The conventional modular jack comprises a number of contact elements each being bent and then individually mounted into an insulative member, which hinders the manufacturing process of the modular jack and increases manufacturing costs. Furthermore, the contact elements may not be securely retained in position which may lead to undesired short-circuiting therebetween, causing deterioration of signal transmission quality.
The modular jack is often encased in and shielded by a shielding member for EMI (electromagnetic interference) protection. Conventionally, the shielding member is formed with extensions for grounding to and positioning on a circuit board. Such extensions have a poor mechanical strength which often leads to deformation thereof due to misalignment during insertion into holes defined in the circuit board. In addition, since the extensions are portions of the shielding member which is usually made of a metal plate, the positioning pins have a thin flat configuration which wears away inner surfaces of the holes during insertion into the circuit board thereby damaging the circuit board.
It is thus desirable to provide a modular jack type electrical connector for overcoming the above problems of the prior art connectors.